Various thoughts I posted on LinkedIn:

October 2023

Human Intelligence

It is fascinating how HI (Human Intelligence) works in sharp contrast to AI (Artificial Intelligence). I was head-banging on a software issue for two days. That )()??;gf would not work. I left the problem for a day and went on finishing other stuff. Then, out of the blue, an aha moment came out of nowhere, and I solved it in only a few minutes. If, instead, you needed AI to tackle the same, that other ghgcggf;);; would keep trying and trying forever. #HumanVsMachine #HumanIntuition LinkedIn

AI Student “Glenn”

A teacher created an artificial (AI) student called “Glenn” and gave it the same test in computer science algorithms that he gave to his real students. Glenn got a C-, while the class test average was in the mid-80s. AI Glenn will fare better in a makeup test and can catch up with its fellow students if allowed to learn from its mistakes. But, AI Glenn is not a human being who will take pleasure from A-cing a test. That is for us humans to do. We (humans) need to treat students like “Glenn” nicely and fairly. The results will be an A+ for humans and machines working together. “Glenn” story is below. https://lnkd.in/gYbZ37Cf #chatgpt #llm #ai #education LinkedIn

Chance

It is funny how things happen just unexpectedly. Last week, I opened one of the AI books in my home library. The book was a few years old. In it, the author acknowledges the Python Portland community (Python PDX). I wasn’t aware of such a community not far from my home in the Vancouver, Washington metropolitan area. I searched them online and discovered they have a meetup group and were also promoting the Google Generative AI (the one I attended last week, thanks to the Python PDX alert). After I accessed the Meetup app to sign up for the Python PDX meetup group, I searched for nearby activities and discovered that there is a local Chess community that meets in person each Tuesday. I met up with the chess folks last night and had a great time! I am excited because I have been working from home, interacting with the outside professional world, and playing chess as a hobby online only for the last four years. You might say that no such events are hidden from plain sight if you know when and where to look. Hence, none of these are unpredictable events. True, but one random unrelated event in which I picked one of my many books in my library brought several exciting encounters to me. The moral of my story here is to embrace random acts of chance, but, of course, mainly for good (or geeky) reasons. LinkedIn

eBay Terms of Service

eBay updated its terms of service to include artificial intelligence material. I find their update to be somewhat weird and contradictory sometimes. One paragraph says, “You assume full responsibility for the item offered and the accuracy and content of the listing, including listing content created using tools offered by eBay or third parties such as translation, image editing, and generative artificial intelligence tools.” Another paragraph says you cannot “use any robot, spider, scraper, data mining tools, data gathering, and extraction tools, or other automated means to access our Services for any purpose, except with the prior express permission of eBay.” Another paragraph says “Artificial intelligence-based tools may be used to provide you with content; availability and accuracy of these tools and content are not guaranteed.” If I summarize all these paragraphs together, I can then deduce the following: users cannot bring their own AI stuff to eBay unless they can successfully manage to talk to eBay, and you, the user, is responsible for whatever AI eBay forces on you, even if in error. Is this how the commercialization of AI will take shape in e-commerce? Like it or not, mistakes or not, you must accept their AI products. What do you think? https://lnkd.in/gxPhAxxq #generativeai LinkedIn

Silicon Valley book

I highly recommend the 1982 novel “Silicon Valley” by Michael Rogers. It is a fiction story that is as relevant today as it was decades ago. It has all the critical technology and business components that make it so realistic- artificial intelligence, chatbots, hardware chips, Turing Test, entrepreneurship, startups, legal issues, acquisitions, open source, family struggles, politics, competition, and more. LinkedIn

The trend is clear: people worldwide lost interest in NFT, Crypto, and the Metaverse; Blockchain remains the same; Generative AI is on the upward trend. My Google Trends search LinkedIn

Frankenstein

I am watching 1931 Frankenstein. Why is it relevant to #ai and computers? For one, its author, Mary Shelley, used to hang out with Lord Byron, the father of the first programmer, Ada Lovelace , in the eighteen hundreds. Her writings were influenced by Lord Byron, who himself is a renowned poet. Furthermore, Frankenstein, in the story, wanted to be God by creating the monster that ultimately turned rogue against its creator and humanity, in general. Dr Frankstein’s mistake was that his assistant stole the “wrong” brain to fit it into the monster. Why is this relevant today? We do not want creators like Frankenstein creating human-like machines as monsters. #ethicalAI LinkedIn

Frankenstein Part II (part I: https://lnkd.in/gFqDGK-J) After watching the original movie, I saw “The Bride of Frankenstein” (1935). The latter has all the ethical and nostalgia of AI. The monster goes through speech training and develops sentiments about what is good or bad. It tried to become human but realized that only of its kind are friends.The “male” monster meets its “bride” machine, who rejects “him’ and runs to its human creator, Dr Frankstein, for safety. The monster realizes that Dr Frankstein and his human wife are good. It sets them free and destroys himself, his machine counterpart, and an evil scientist. I snapped a photo of the monster and his bride attempting to bond through a human-like touch. Like any other robot, that touch can never work without a human heart. So net-net…. humans … GOOD.. machines BAD. LinkedIn

November 2023

Automation Tools

I read a ’60s fiction book last night about a salesman going to business offices and pitching automation tools that will replace human employees to save money and be more productive. Such stories are real, and their impact was both constructive and destructive during the computer and the industrial revolutions of the past centuries. At first, I was entertained by the story because, up to that moment, I always considered myself, like many computer geeks, one of those developing automation solutions for businesses. But as I was starting my day this morning, I realized that even developing technology skills falls under a marginal utility formula in this age. As many technical skills as you can acquire or claim to possess, businesses, not technologies now have the upper hand. They would replace the people developing automation tools with automation tools because they can save money and be more productive. I don’t know what the next decade will look like for independent computer engineers compared to large LLM models that known tech giants control. Still, I do know that we must keep innovating and helping others, even if at the expense of our future selves. #tech #ai INFOCOM AI LinkedIn

The Perfect Programmer

Found a note card in one of my books written by anonymous: “THE PERFECT PROGRAMMER: ‘No program is that perfect’ they said with a shrug. ‘The client is happy… what’s one little bug?’ But he was determined. The others went home. He dug out the flow chart. Deserted. Alone. Night passed into morning. The room was cluttered with memory dumps, microfiche. ‘I am close, “ he muttered. Chain smoking, cold coffee. Logic. Deduction. ‘I’ve got it’, he cried. ‘Just change one instruction.’ Then change two, then three more. As year followed year. And strangers would comment “is that guy still there?” He died at the console, of hunger and thirst. Next day he was buried, face down, nine edge first. And his wife, through her tears, accepted his fate, said ‘he’s not really gone. He’s just working late”. 😁 #tech #coders LinkedIn

ENIAC Programmer-Ladies

You probably know Ada Lovelace or Adele Goldberg as famous computer programmers of our time, but you should be familiar with the names Ruth Teitelbaum and Marlyn Wescoff. Ruth and Marlyn are the original programmers for the ENIAC computer, the first programmable digital computer from 1945. The ENIAC was unveiled to the public in 1946, making headlines worldwide. Unfortunately, the attention of the ENIAC was mainly towards the male hardware engineers rather than together with the software team. History must give more credit to first-generation women programmers, including Marlyn and Ruth. The photo below shows Ruth and Marlyn wiring the ENIAC with a new program in 1946. In this post, I would like to recognize all software and hardware engineers, especially the women who need to be credited more or get the front light in the computer industry, including the recent AI movement. #tech #womenintech #ai #computerhistory LinkedIn

Titanic The Musical

I saw Titanic the Musical last night. (SPOILER ALERT if you plan to watch the movie.) We all know the ship sank in the end, so no surprise here. However, the theatrical adaptation of the story made me realize that what happened with the Titanic is what happens in many entrepreneurial projects. There are three key players: the owner (the money guy), the engineer (the designer of the ship), and the project manager (the captain). The stakeholders are at different levels (first class, second class, and third class passengers). The owner hangs out with the first class, promises speed to delivery (reach the designation before lunchtime), and instructs the captain to do so in front of the first class stakeholders. The captain, under pressure, pushes the workers and ignores the multiple warnings of an iceberg ahead. He trusts his instincts. The engineer is egoistic and believes his design is 100% error-free. The Titanic hits the iceberg. The lifeboats are closer to the first class by design, so the first to take boats are the first class, followed by the second class. The third class is left behind, except for one that kept hanging around the upper class. The owner saves himself and jumps into a lifeboat that remains mostly empty. That boat could have saved many of the third class. While the ship is sinking, the engineer reflects on his design and finds the error, but it is too late now. The captain blames himself, and so does the co-captain. The captain, the engineer, a senior first-class couple, all the workers, and the third class drown. The owner and the rest of the first and second class are safe. Isn’t this typical of technology unicorns? The owner survives, and the first and second-class stakeholders usually stay, but the third-class stakeholders and the workers are generally the victims of products and businesses going bad. #projectmanagement #enterpreneurship #product LinkedIn

VIM Keys H, J, K, and L

For the “VIM” editor fanatics (me, one of them), do you know why the keys, H, J, K, and L were used for left, down, up, and right, respectively? The creator of VI was using the ADM-3A, a 1976 computer terminal that had the arrow keys associated with the keys mentioned. You can see this in the photo below. Also, do you know that “VIM” was not a modified version of the 1979 “VI” editor but the 1987 VI clone for the Atari, called “Stevie?” The original VI editor was based on the 1976 “ED” editor that was owned by AT&T and required an AT&T license. To get around that, the creator of Stevie built a complete replica of VI without using any of the original VI code and made it open-source. Based on Stevie, “VIM” was later developed. (Reference: https://lnkd.in/gdAyT2ez) #computerhistory #tech LinkedIn

Telephones

I left Verizon in 2017. On my last day, I visited its in-house museum and took pictures of their vintage phones. Those phones have brought people worldwide closer and ever more connected. Lovers, families, journalists, businesses, and everyone would use them to communicate. We no longer use such devices, but it won’t hurt to remember their significance to society now and then. Thanks, Verizon, AT&T, the Bell companies, and all the telecom companies worldwide. #communication #technology #tech LinkedIn

The Abacus and the Analog Computer

How far we have come. The lady in the photo, taken in 1956, is holding an abacus in front of an analog computer. The abacus is a calculating device dating to as early as 2700 BC (4723 years ago). The analog computer dates back nearly 70 years. Both are now primitive compared to what we have today. We now have every technology device out there, on the cloud, in our pockets, brains, bodies, and mother nature, but we still need more. #technology #innovation #ai #automation #computerhistory LinkedIn

Advising

In the seventies, I advised my parents on what to do with me as a child using every human sense in my power because I wanted to play video games. In the eighties, I advised my friends what to do with their home computers even before I had my own. In the nineties, I advised small businesses on personal computers before I had my own. In the millennium, I advised companies on website development and hosting before I had my own. In the decades that followed, I advised enterprise colleagues on product solutions before leaving to start my own. Now, I advise parents, friends, small businesses, and enterprises on #AI. I guess what comes next is my kids telling me, “Hey, Dad. Let me advise you with ….” Until then, feel free to seek my advice about #ai at INFOCOM AI because my experience is an aggregate of everything about computers from the past to the present, at least before the kids take over. LinkedIn

Holograms

Notice the hologram on your credit cards? Holograms were created using laser techniques in the 60s, but you need to thank National Geographic for being the first to print a hologram at scale on its cover for everyone to see. Due to the magazine’s popularity, the printing of the Eagle hologram on the cover page of its March 1984 edition was done on a large scale. A few years later, credit card companies followed similar techniques as the National Geographic magazine to print holograms at scale on our credit cards to protect against counterfeiting. #computerhistory #tech reference LinkedIn

Satya

I am impressed with Satya’s leadership in handling the Open AI Shakespearean drama that unfolded over the weekend. For those who did not catch up on the news, the OpenAI board fires Sam Altman. Its CEO. The president, Greg Brockman, and some staff members resign in protest, while many others at the company, including the CTO, declare their support for Altman. The board tries to undo its decision by asking Altman to return. Altman contemplates, “Hmm… yes? No? …. No!” and, before you know it, Satya, the leader of Microsoft, releases a statement that Altman, Brockman, and some others are joining Microsoft to build a special AI team. Satya also states Microsoft’s continued commitment to OpenAI for the foreseeable future. No matter how people interpret the weekend events or judge any leadership actions of Microsoft or OpenAI, I should give it to Satya to step in and take swift action to tame the chaos around the company OpenAI and its leadership that is behind the hottest tech product of today, and that is ChatGPT. #openai #chaos #leadership LinkedIn

e-Business and ai-business

A profound thought for a Monday. To your left is e-business in 2000. To your right is ai-business in 2023, twenty-three years later. Regardless of the fame and fortune of those in the photos, which side should cheer or thank the other when it comes to shaping our digital world? Is it the e-business folks that drove online commerce and made the web more popular today and generated the data for the ai-business folks, or is it the algorithms of the ai-folks that made the web more exciting today, such as that, without ai, we might not advance in the modern age? #ai #digital #tech LinkedIn

Mental Fatigue

Mental fatigue is probably more real nowadays than at any time before. It may be due to recent world events, economic conditions due to rising prices, fear of AI apocalypse taking all jobs away, end-of-fiscal year layoffs, or you might be having bad days. In any case, it is crucial to stay on top of your current condition through a systematic approach that can keep you focused while suppressing any emotional distress. For instance, when my days feel too much, I would walk with my wife around the neighborhood. I also look forward to my weekly chess club with acquaintances-turned-friends at a brewery each Tuesday. I occasionally take my mind off the computer screen by picking up one of my 300 70s/80s computer magazines from my bookshelf and reliving the technological events of that era. Sometimes, I would play a game of Galaxian or Galaga on the Nintendo. It all helps me reset my mind after only 30 minutes. I understand everyone’s schedule is different, and taking 30 minutes to read a magazine or play a video game may not apply to everyone. But at the end of the day, whether it is the job or the environment around you that causes mental fatigue, I argue that humans are intelligent enough to find solutions before seeking help from other humans, such as doctors, or asking unhuman chatbots for advice. Have a great day week. Happy Monday! #mentalhealth #tech #mondaymotivation #hobbies LinkedIn

November 1970

Pick up the National Geographic November 1970 issue from eBay or whatever store still has it and read the article “Behold the Computer Revolution.” Read it now, 53 years later, and you will hardly tell the difference between the impact of computers on the world at that time and today. The impacts of computers on society, including education, homes, businesses, governments, and warfare, have mostly stayed the same except for advanced technology. Some leaders say that the current breakthroughs in #AI are the following best things after the Internet. AI is not as impactful as how computers have affected societies from the 19th to the 21st century and, in some cases, before that. Computers and the humans that invented them made everything we currently speak of in digital (plus quantum and analog) technologies today. #ai #tech #technologies #computers #computinghistory linkedin